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Republican Rep.-elect Dan Bishop of North Carolina accused opponents of ‘grotesque, racist’ rhetoric after a Democratic lawmaker called black Rep.-elect Byron Donalds a ‘prop’ by arch conservatives who are backing him for House speaker.
Bishop tore into Democrats on the House floor on Thursday while making a nominating speech for Donalds, who burst into the limelight Wednesday after a group of GOP rebels fell behind him as their alternate candidate for speaker in their battle against Rep.-elect Kevin McCarthy.
Democratic Rep.-elect Cori Bush (Mo.) tweeted that Donalds was a ‘prop’ whose candidacy upholds ‘white supremacy,’ drawing rebukes from both Donalds and Bishop.
‘I’ve spent a good bit of time with Mr. Donalds, especially lately. He ain’t no prop!’ Bishop said, to applause from Republicans who gathered to try once again to elect a speaker.
Rep.-elect Dan Bishop (R-NC) said Rep.-elect Byron Donalds ‘ain’t no prop,’ and blasted Rep.-elect Cori Bush, who suggested he was. A group of arch conservatives including Bishop have been voting for Donalds for speaker while resisting Kevin McCarthy’s bid
‘I know Byron — he’s not a prop. He’s a man of personal conviction,’ he said of the second-term lawmaker from Florida.
He said he sat within feet of Donalds as Bush blasted out her tweet. He called Bush’s attack, without naming her, an example of ‘grotesque, racist rhetoric.’ The remark unified Republicans, who have otherwise been divided on the floor, while trading accusations of political terrorism against one another.
Bush’s tweet put the Democrats on defense during a week when they have been capitalizing on chaos within the House Republican conference.
Incoming House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York avoided directly responding to a question about it during a press conference Thursday.
Bishop had earlier made the same point on Fox News.
‘That’s so unbecoming… it’s time to get past some things that we have been doing for far too long and now is a great time to do it,’ he said.
Republican Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida fired back at Democratic Rep. Cori Bush for suggesting he was a ‘prop’ in the speaker race because he supports white supremacy.
Democrats cheered for Rep.-elect Hakeem Jeffries of New York when Bishop said the House ‘could have nominated the first black speaker of the House of Representatives’
There was a lighter moment of racial politics earlier in Bishop’s remarks.
‘Yesterday, we could have nominated the first black speaker of the House of Representatives,’ he began. That got Democrats on their feet and shouting out ‘Hakeem!’ as they rallied around their own leader, who is the first African American to lead either party in the House or Senate. Democrats have pointedly noted that Jeffries continues to get the highest vote totals for speaker amid the GOP split.
Rep.-elect Chip Roy of Texas mentioned race when he nominated Donalds on the floor Wednesday, referencing Dr. Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech.
‘We do not seek to judge people by the color of their skin, but rather the content of their character,’ he said.
The defense came after Donalds himself fired back at Bush for suggesting he was a ‘prop.’
The Florida congressman-elect said, ‘nobody asked’ the Squad member for her opinion, asked her for a policy debate and told her not to be a ‘crab in a barrel.’
When announcing the nomination in the first round, Roy noted the historic nature of having two black candidates for House Speaker. It came after Democrat Rep. Pete Aguilar of California nominated Jeffries for the gavel multiple times.
It earned a standing ovation from both sides of the House chamber – but Bush was not moved.
‘He is a prop,’ Bush, who is also black, wrote on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon.
Bush dismissed the enthusiasm around the historic nature of Rep. Byron Donalds’ nomination for House Speaker
Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida responds to Democratic Rep. Cori Bush’s comments that he was a ‘prop’ for the Republicans
‘Despite being Black, he supports a policy agenda intent on upholding and perpetuating white supremacy. His name being in the mix is not progress—it’s pathetic.’
‘Nobody asked Cori Bush her opinion on the matter. Before you judge my agenda, let’s have a debate over the policies and the outcomes. Until then, don’t be a crab in a barrel!’ Donalds responded.
Donalds was also asked about Bush’s comments during an appearance on Fox Business on Thursday morning and said: Man, that sucked, man, to be honest with you, man … If you see a Black man rising, let the man rise, even if you don’t agree with him.’
Former GOP Rep. Doug Collins slammed Bush’s comments as racist.
‘Congresswoman, this is racism, and you should be held accountable. It’s disgraceful, disgusting, and dishonorable,’ Collins replied to the post.
Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee said, ‘[I]f you can’t disagree with your colleague…without accusing him of racism, you might be part of the problem.’
Earlier on Wednesday, Donalds spoke to reporters on the steps of the US Capitol during an impromptu press conference on after his name was put forward in the race.
He said it is ‘up to’ McCarthy as to whether he drops out of the running for House Speaker.
Donalds spoke to reporters on the steps of the US Capitol after voting for himself in the second round of Wednesday’s Speaker vote, and the fifth round overall.
Asked by DailyMail.com about his reaction to Donald Trump supporting McCarthy, Donalds – a supporter of the ex-president himself – brushed off the high-profile backer.
‘President Trump has been in that position for several months. Knowing President Trump, he doesn’t change his mind,’ Donalds began.
‘That’s all well and good, but the members are going to decide this process. And you know, that’s, that’s no disrespect at all to President Trump. That’s just the reality of the House.’
It comes after Colorado GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert, another Trump ally, publicly demanded that the ex-president call McCarthy and tell him to withdraw from the race as she nominated Donalds in his place during one of Wednesday’s votes.
The House of Representatives failed to elect a speaker on the first-round vote for the first time in 100 years on Tuesday – and then fell further into disarray as McCarthy failed multiple times on Wednesday.
It’s set the GOP’s new – albeit slim – House majority off to a chaotic start.
A group of 19 conservatives derailed McCarthy’s bid, despite his making last-minute concessions they had asked for including greenlighting a measure that would allow any five Republicans to call for a new Speaker vote at any time – known as the motion to vacate.
Donalds joined their rebellion on the third round, by which point McCarthy’s critics had all coalesced around GOP Rep. Jim Jordan – who has repeatedly said he does not want the gavel.
Then on Wednesday, Donalds was nominated by Texas Rep. Chip Roy in the first round and Boebert in the second round.
He told reporters on Wednesday that he did not ‘actually’ desire the Speakership, adding, ‘I really never came here to try to be in leadership.’
House Republicans have been in disarray and without a majority leader since January 3
The lack of leadership has produced multiple heated moments on the House floor between GOP members for and against Rep. Kevin McCarthy
‘I didn’t come to DC being interested in becoming Speaker of the House,’ Donalds said.
‘But I also understand that, you know, part of my responsibility is to make sure that our conference gets to a point where we are doing the things in an effective and constructive way.’
Unlike Jordan, however, who also said he did not want the role he was being nominated for on Tuesday – Donalds has voted for himself in all three rounds on Wednesday.
Republicans have fallen into disarray already on the second day of their slim majority.
The 118th Congress has not yet been sworn in due to the delay in picking a new Speaker.
GOP lawmakers could be seen having intense conversations on the House floor and in various hallways outside of the chamber.
McCarthy’s critics have made clear that his concessions are not enough, signaling that the inter-party fight has taken a deeply personal turn.
Donalds originally supported McCarthy but has since called for more discussions and meetings for his party to work out a compromise.
However, he told reporters that the fight may not be over yet for the current House GOP chief.
‘I don’t think we’re there at this point,’ he said when asked if McCarthy should step aside. ‘I think there’s a lot of members in the chamber who want to have serious conversations about how we can bring this all, you know, to a close.’
‘But I’m not going to speak for Kevin, and that’s something that he and his team got to figure out.’
He suggested he hadn’t yet spoken with McCarthy but ‘anticipated’ a conversation later Wednesday.
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